Article-vending apparatus utilizing displaceable article-containing transport members

ABSTRACT

Article vending is achieved by utilizing article-containing transport members that are displaced for vending of an article thereon. The movable trays are horizontally disposed in drawers, with a plurality of vertically separated drawers positioned in a cabinet. Selection of an article located on a transport member results in that transport member being displaced to position the rearmost article on the transport member in a vend area, from whence it is conveyed to a dispensing area by a vertically movable extracting member.

United States Patent 22 m r J S mmm m T mmm m N "n" .R m M A m m N w i?"u l S .w E n m 0 mr w "m m mmmm m m s m m n. D In R GGG i n wm Tm w www"mm 703 WOW 1 GR m 1 emu m o 6 802 M 5 .l 233 PA mm m ABSTRACT: Articlevending is achieved by utilizing articlecontaining transport membersthat are displaced for vending of an article thereon. The movable traysare horizontally disposed in drawers, with a plurality of verticallyseparated drawers positioned in a cabinet. Selection of an articlelocated on a transport member results in that transport member beingdisplaced to position the rearmost article on the transport member in avend area, from whence it is conveyed to a dispensing area by avertically movable extracting member.

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sum 01 [1F 21 INVENTORS ALB/NUS 6. BODOH OWE/V J-SCHWERTFEG'ER R0) 4.JOHNSON PATENTED $5728 '97! INVENTORS ALB/NUS PATENIEnsivealsn 3608.7.SHEET 1a or 21 i I I hill INVENTORS. ALB/NUS 6. 8000/1 OWEN J.SCHWERTFEGER ROY/1. JOHNSON PATENTEnsEPzmsn 3508.7.

SHEET 180F21 zit-$ IIVVENTORS ALB/NUS 6. 8000!! OWEN J. SCHWERTFEGER ROYA. JOHNSON

1. Article-vending apparatus comprising: a transport member storingarticles to be dispensed and mounted for longitudinal reciprocablemotion between a rest position and a vend position; a vend area, anarticle to be dispensed from the vending apparatus located at the end ofsaid transport member adjacent said vend area; actuating means producingmovement of said transport member to said vend position to place thearticle to be dispensed in said vend area; extracting means for removingthe article to be dispensed from said transport member for dispensingthereof; and reset means for returning said transport member to saidrest position.
 2. A vending apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein saidextracting means comprises an elevator mechanism adapted to extract thearticle to be dispensed from said transport member upon upward movementof said elevator mechanism.
 3. An article vending apparatus as claimedin claim 2 wherein: a plurality of said transport members are located ona horizontal shelf; a plurality of said horizontal shelves are stackedwith adjacent shelves spaced at discrete vertical intervals, saidtransport members on said shelves aligned along vertical planes; andsaid elevator mechanism comprises a single pivoted plate having spacednotches therein to define a series of fingers, each finger adapted toextract articles from said transport members in an associated verticallyaligned column of said transport members.
 4. A vending apparatus asclaimed in claim 2 wherein said elevator mechanism comprises: a basemember adapted for upward and downward movement; an article removal andconveying member mounted on said base member and adapted to remove saidarticle from said transport member and to convey said article to adispensing area; and drive means for reciprocably driving said basemember upward and downward.
 5. An article-vending apparatus as claimedin claim 4 wherein: said base member extends between two link chains,one positioned on either side of the article vending apparatus; saidarticle removal and conveying member comprises a pivoted plate extendingfrom one side of the article vending apparatus to the other and havingspaced notches therein to define a series of fingers, each fingeradapted to engage an article in the path thereof; said article removaland conveying member is spring biased for rotation in a counterclockwisedirection; and said drive means comprises a reversible motor.
 6. Anarticle-vending apparatus as claimed in claim 5 and further comprising astop means adapted to engage said article removal and conveying memberat the upper end of its upward movement and cause it to rotate in aclockwise direction to eject an article thereon.
 7. An article-vendingapparatus as claimed in claim 5 and further comprising a motor reversingswitch arrangement comprising: a pair of stop members located on areciprocably movable plate; a switch adapted to be opened and closed inresponse to movement of said movable plate; actuating rods placed onsaid link chain and adapted to engage one or the other of said stopmeans upon movement along the length thereof; and an electromagneticsolenoid energized by closure of said switch upon movement of saidplate.
 8. An article-vending apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein aplurality of said transport members are horizontally disposed within aslidable drawer.
 9. An article-vending apparatus as claimed in Claim 1wherein said transport member is a tray supported by a frame in theapparatus comprising: a front wall; two sidewalls extending rearwardlyfrom said front wall; a bottom portion extending from each of saidsidewalls less than half the distance between said sidewalls to form agroove in the bottom of said tray; and a backwall portion extending fromeach of said side walls less than half the distance between saidsidewalls to form an opening therebetween.
 10. An article-vendingapparatus as claimed in claim 9 and further comprising a U-shaped stopmember located at the top of said backwall portions and horizontallydisposed substantially parallel to the bottom of said trays to preventupward movement of the article adjacent to the article being vended. 11.An article-vending apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein saidU-shaped stop member is positioned at an angle to a horizontal plane inorder to cam articles in said tray against the bottom of said tray. 12.An article-vending apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein saidactivating means comprises a pusher element mounted in said groove inthe bottom of said tray and adapted to engage the from of the articlesstored in said tray; and a constant force spring attached to the frameand having another portion thereof bear against said pusher element tocause said pusher element to bias the articles toward the rear of saidtray and to provide an actuating force to produce movement of said tray.13. An article vending apparatus as claimed in claim 12 and furthercomprising: latch means adapted to normally maintain said tray in saidrest position; and a pivoted selector button adapted upon energizationthereof to cause said latch to release said tray to move to said vendposition under the force of said spring.
 14. An article vendingapparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said extracting means comprisesa vertically movable screen having a removal portion adjacent eachtransport member to remove an article to be vended upon downwardmovement of said screen.
 15. An article-vending apparatus as claimed inclaim 14 wherein said removal portion comprises: a first surface adaptedto engage and eject said article; and a second surface adapted to retainthe next adjacent article in said transport member as said article isbeing ejected.
 16. A cigarette-vending machine having a frame andcomprising: a plurality of horizontally disposed longitudinallyreciprocable trays containing cigarette packs; a pusher element locatedin each tray and positioned in front of the cigarette packs; constantforce springs, each connected at one end thereof to the frame of thecigarette vending machine, the other ends of said springs being attachedto respective ones of said pusher elements; a plurality of latch means,each of said latch means normally retaining an associated one of saidtrays in a rest position; a plurality of pivoted selector buttons, eachof said selector buttons adapted to actuate an associated one of saidlatch means to release a corresponding tray for movement to a vendposition; an elevator mechanism adapted to be driven upwardly to extractan article at the rear of a tray in said vend position, said elevatormechanism having a single actuating bar extending across the width ofsaid cigarette-vending machine and having fingers formed thereon, eachfinger adapted to extract packages from a vertically aligned series oftrays; reset means associated with said elevator means to return a trayin said vend position to said rest position upon upward movement of saidelevator mechanism; ejecting means engaging said elevator mechanism atthe limit of its upward movement to cause a pack of cigarettes thereonto be ejected to a dispensing area; and means for causing said elevatormechanism to be returned to its lowermost position after ejectiontherefrom a pack of cigarettes.
 17. A cigarette-vending machine asclaimEd in claim 16 wherein all of the trays on a single level arelocated in a slidable drawer.
 18. An article-vending apparatus asclaimed in claim 1, wherein a plurality of said transport members areeach mounted for longitudinal reciprocable motion of independent of theother transport members.